AUSTIN (KXAN) — Uvalde CISD Police Chief Pete Arredondo could be fired this weekend as the school board meets to go over his fate, according to an agenda for the Saturday special meeting.
CNN first reported about Arredondo’s possible termination.
The agenda said much of the discussion of Arredondo’s contract will occur in closed session. Consultation with the district’s attorney could also happen. The board meeting will take place at 9 a.m.
Discussion and possible action regarding termination for good cause as recommended by the Superintendent of the non-certified contract of Pete Arredondo.
July 23 agenda for Uvalde CISD board special meeting
The superintendent placed Arredondo on administrative leave in June, and CNN’s source for the report said the school board is “expected to vote to terminate Arredondo” in a meeting Saturday.
This comes as more people are asking for accountability for all of the officers who responded on May 24 when a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School.
Below is a list of the agencies that responded, along with the number of officers who responded from each agency.
- United States Border Patrol, 149
- Texas Department of Public Safety, 91
- Uvalde Police Department, 25
- San Antonio Police Department SWAT, 16
- Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office, 16
- Department of Homeland Security, 14
- United States Marshals, 13
- Drug Enforcement Agency, 8
- Frio County Sheriff’s Office, 7
- Kinney County Sheriff’s Office, 5
- Uvalde CISD Police, 5
- Dilley Police Department, 4
- Zavala County Sheriff’s Office, 4
- Medina County Sheriff’s Office, 3
- Sabinal Police Department, 3
- City of Uvalde Fire Marshals, 2
- Pearsall Police Department, 2
- Texas Parks and Wildlife, 2
- Uvalde County Constables, 2
- Val Verde County Sheriff’s Office, 2
- Frio County Constables, 1
- Southwest Texas Junior College, 1
- Zavala County Constables, 1
“I have worked with [some of] them in the past, and some of them are friends,” said Texas Municipal Police Association Field Supervisor Mike Gomez, whose region includes Uvalde. “And you can just tell in the tone of their voice that there’s just a long way forward to healing…. Close friends, family, are all affected. It’s a tight-knit community. There’s so much more that will come to light. Lots of our members are still going through interviews, and they cannot say too much until those interviews are done… Hopefully we can have more information, so the public sees them a little differently.”
A total of 376 law enforcement officers from 23 different agencies responded to the mass shooting.
KXAN is reaching out to each individual agency, asking about the departments’ roles in the response, the employment status of responding officers and whether internal or third-party investigations are underway aside from the Department of Justice’s investigation into the response as a whole.
We’ve listed the responses we have received so far.
Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)
Texas DPS is reviewing its own response to the shooting.
In a statement to KXAN Monday, Texas DPS said it’s creating an internal committee, which will be led by the department’s Deputy Director of Law Enforcement Services, to conduct the investigation.
Tuesday, State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, said he sent a letter to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick demanding accountability from Texas DPS. He said he wanted to know why it took DPS over 50 days to start an internal audit and if we can trust the department to review its own mistakes made during the shooting response.
You can read the full DPS statement about its internal investigation below.
“Last week, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) formed an internal committee to review the department’s response to the May 24 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. DPS’ Deputy Director of Law Enforcement Services is leading the committee which includes members from the department’s Training Operations Division, Office of Inspector General, Office of General Counsel and Special Operations Group. Members are currently reviewing and examining the actions of every DPS Trooper, Officer, Agent and Ranger that responded to Robb Elementary to determine if any violations of policy, law, or doctrine occurred and where the department can make necessary improvements for future mass casualty responses. No additional information will be available until the committee has completed its full review of the department’s response.“
Uvalde Police Department
Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin tapped former Austin Police Department detective Jesse Prado to conduct an internal investigation into the Uvalde Police Department’s actions on May 24.
United States Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol provided the below statement to KXAN regarding its 149 officers who responded to Robb Elementary.
CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) is still conducting its comprehensive review of the agency’s response to the tragic events that took place at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. OPR has not reached any final conclusions and is working with other investigative agencies and the Department of Justice to review the entirety of this incident. When OPR concludes its review, it will submit findings to CBP’s National Use of Force Review Board, along with CBP and DHS leadership. Like with other investigative reports, CBP will share its findings with the public when appropriate. We are committed to identifying any improvements to training or tactics that could applied to future incidents. CBP will continue to work with our federal, state, and local partners to answer the difficult questions on what went wrong and how we can improve our responses. We owe this to the Uvalde community, and the nation.
CBP Spokesperson
According to the office’s initial review, agents responded from as far as 70 miles away to provide support. They assisted in evacuating students and teachers from other classrooms as well as ultimately entering the classroom where the gunman was and engaged the shooter.
Border patrol agents also helped secure a perimeter, supported family reunification efforts and performed medical triage, according to a spokesperson. The spokesperson also told KXAN only one agent on scene was wearing a body camera, because CBP has not fully rolled out its body camera program.
San Antonio Police Department SWAT
The San Antonio Police Department Public Information Office provided the below statement regarding its 16 officers who responded to the shooting.
According to the report just released, a team of officers made entry into the classrooms and killed the attacker at 12:50 p.m.
The first team of SAPD SWAT officers arrived in Uvalde by helicopter, at approximately 1:15 pm. Additional SWAT officers arrived by vehicle at approximately 1:29 p.m. Upon arrival, SAPD was notified that the attacker had been killed. There is no SAPD internal investigation into this incident.
San Antonio Police Department Public Information Office
Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office
A county employee said the sheriff declined to comment.
Drug Enforcement Administration
The DEA told KXAN in an email it “will refrain from providing comments” because of the ongoing over-arching investigation. The agency also said the Privacy Act prohibits it from commenting on the status of employment.
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
The TPWD said two game wardens responded to Robb Elementary on May 24, with one arriving after the gunman was shot. A spokesperson said once the Texas Ranger, U.S. Department of Justice and FBI are done investigating, TPWD will determine if an internal investigation into its wardens’ actions is warranted.
Frio County Sheriff’s Office
The Frio County Sheriff’s Office assisted in securing a perimeter around Robb Elementary, according to Chief Pedro Salinas. No deputies are currently on leave, and there is no internal investigation into FCSO’s response.
